The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I know that early Victrolas came with bullet brakes, lifted from the external horn machines of the same period. So why the change to the kind of brake that replaced it?

My best guess is that a brake that rubs on the inside of the turntable did not degrade the nickel finish on the outside edge of the turntable. Nickel is rugged but over time the finish degrades. You've probably noticed that early machine with gold bright parts like the Victor VI and Victrola XVI all had nickel plated turntables. That's because a gold plated turntable would quickly suffer from the brake pad rubbing on the gold. By changing the design to rub on the inside of the turntable allowed the turntable edge to be gold plated like the rest of the trim. Good question.

Jerry Blais

I think the reason of the change, is a friction brake is cheaper to manufacture than a bullet break. I think it was a cost saving measure. A lot of the late open horn Victors used a friction or tab break.
Harvey Kravitz